Dubai:A residential hotspot the Dubai Silicon Oasis definitely is, but its commercial space is holding its own quite well.
“DSO office space is experiencing a stealth rally as the combination of a free zone and an attractive price point serve as an optimum mix for investors and end-users alike,” said Sameer Lakhani, managing director at Global Capital Partners, which has property investment exposure at DSO.
“In the medium-term, a number of projects in DSO as well as surrounding areas (Liwan, Majan, Arjan and Dubai Residential City) will come to fruition, thus stabilising price dynamics. However, in the near term prices are expected to remain elevated and even rise from their current levels.”
“Also, given the paucity of ready affordable units being available in the real estate market, prices in this area have spiked as investors and speculators have committed to off-plan and ready developments.”
Just before the upturn, DSO values were in hovering in the Dh500-550 a square foot range; now the average has been pushed to Dh900 and thereabouts. This, in the current market environment, is where DSO gets its competitive price advantage over competing locations.
Upward trend
“DSO has seen an upward trend of over 20 per cent since the turn of the year; even so, the location offers the advantage of a near-balanced division between costly and mid-range properties,” said Maja Miladinovic, CEO of Seasif Group.
“The master-developer has clearly attempted to create an inclusive environment fit for all types of end-users in the market, and this continues to be the governing norm within the free zone. Although the general trend would be to upscale the value of properties based on market forces, I believe the Authority would choose to phase out price revisions in a way that would sustain demand and offer a positive differentiation in comparison to other locations.”
Seasif has plans to take on more projects in Dubai, with DSO rated as a “focus location”. “The area holds a lot of potential to attract increased liquidity and our aim would be to tap these opportunities in an effective way,” Miladinovic said.
“We started with the Axis 1 and 6 towers in DSO, and recently acquired an inventory from Donna Towers. These acquisitions are a major starting point for us, which we hope to follow up with our own developments in the future.”